Yuichi Watanabe
Yuichi Watanabe is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler.[1][2] He competed in Shooto's Lightweight division and was the inaugural Shooto Lightweight Champion defeating Kazuhiro Kusayanagi. As a pro wrestler he competes for Real Japan Pro Wrestling under the name Super Rider. He has also wrestled for notable promotions such as W*ING, Big Japan Pro Wrestling, IWA Japan, Battlarts, Dramatic Dream Team, Pro Wrestling KAGEKI, Pro Wrestling ZERO-1 and Diamond Ring.[3]
| Yuichi Watanabe | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Fukuoka, Japan |
| Other names | Super Rider Kamen Shooter Hopper King Kamen Shooter Super Rider "Shooter" |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) |
| Weight | 152 lb (69 kg; 10.9 st) |
| Division | Lightweight |
| Style | Shoot wrestling, Pro wrestling, Shoot boxing, Catch wrestling, Submission wrestling, sambo, judo |
| Team | Shooting Gym Mobara |
| Years active | 1989–1992 (MMA) |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 9 |
| Wins | 6 |
| By submission | 5 |
| By decision | 1 |
| Losses | 3 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 2 |
| Notable relatives | Shooto Watanabe, son |
| Website | Seikendo（掣圏真陰流） |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Background and career
Watanabe trained under Satoru Sayama in Shooto and was also one of his first trainees at his Seikendo school. He also learned shootboxing under Caesar Takeshi, was an amateur wrestling champion in high school, was the captain of his high school club wrestling club with Mitsuharu Misawa as his vice-captain and Toshiaki Kawada as his junior, competed in the 1984 All Japan Student Wrestling Championships representing Nihon University losing to future Olympic medalist Kosei Akaishi in the finals in the 68 kg freestyle division, and also trained in sambo and judo. Watanabe initially worked as a trainer at Shooting Gym Mobara, as well as an instructor for Sayama's Seikendo school. He now runs the Super Tiger Gym Gunma as a head trainer.
Personal life
Watanabe is the father of professional MMA fighters Kenshiro and Shuto "Shooto" Watanabe.[4]
Championships and accomplishments
- Shooto
- Shooto Lightweight Championship (1 time, inaugural champion)
Mixed martial arts record
| 9 matches | 6 wins | 3 losses |
| By knockout | 0 | 1 |
| By submission | 5 | 2 |
| By decision | 1 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 6–3 | Naoki Sakurada | Submission (kneebar) | Shooto - Shooto | May 29, 1992 | 3 | 0:57 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 5–3 | Tomonori Ohara | Submission (kneebar) | Shooto - Shooto | March 27, 1992 | 1 | 0:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Loss | 4–3 | Naoki Sakurada | Submission (armbar) | Shooto - Shooto | August 25, 1991 | 5 | 2:03 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 4–2 | Kazuhiro Kusayanagi | Submission (kneebar) | Shooto - Shooto | March 29, 1991 | 1 | 0:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 3–2 | Tomonori Ohara | Decision (unanimous) | Shooto - Shooto | January 13, 1991 | 5 | 3:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Loss | 2–2 | Yuji Ito | TKO (punches) | Shooto - Shooto | May 12, 1990 | 3 | 1:49 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 2–1 | Kazuhiro Sakamoto | Submission (armbar) | Shooto - Shooto | January 13, 1990 | 2 | 2:54 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Loss | 1–1 | Naoki Sakurada | Submission (heel hook) | Shooto - Shooto | July 29, 1989 | 1 | 0:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 1–0 | Yuji Ito | Submission (armbar) | Shooto - Shooto | May 18, 1989 | 1 | 0:00 | Tokyo, Japan |
See also
References
- "Yuichi Watanabe". Sherdog. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
- "Yuichi Watanabe". mixedmartialarts.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014.
- "Super Rider". cagematch.net.
- James Goyder (May 20, 2021). "Shooto Watanabe's journey from reluctant student to Rizin contender". asianmma.com.
External links
- Professional MMA record for Yuichi Watanabe from Sherdog
- Yuichi Watanabe at mixedmartialarts.com